The Mustang Messengerhttps://mustangmessenger.net
The student news site of Kennesaw Mountain High SchoolMon, 12 Feb 2018 23:24:48 -0500en-UShourly1https://wordpress.org/?v=4.9.4115203096Feeling the Kneeling?https://mustangmessenger.net/4635/opinions/feeling-the/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4635/opinions/feeling-the/#respondMon, 12 Feb 2018 23:16:16 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=4635Colin Kaepernick, former quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers, has been making headlines for the past year over his controversial kneeling campaign. In response to the police brutality and racial inequality in America, Kaepernick began kneeling during the national anthem. Fellow athletes followed him supporting his protest by using his trademark pose, staying off of the field during the anthem, or locking arms in solidarity.
While the campaign did spark conversation, a majority of it was not related to Kaepernick’s message. Instead, most people wrongly believed that Kaepernick was using his platform to publicize a political opinion. President Trump responded to the display with outrage demanding that all kneeling players be fired for disrespecting the flag and the army. His outrage rings hollow as veterans have advocated for players who kneel on multiple occasions. Others claim that athletes should not be allowed to protest in uniform, but who are we to deny them the right to use their platforms? Activism isn’t always palatable. Sometimes it takes up space like highway marches or it makes people uncomfortable, but that’s okay. Those are nothing more than growing pains while America adjusts to new social standards. Regardless of rebukes, it appears that the only person negatively affected by #TakeAKnee was Kaepernick who found himself unemployed when players were drafted this season.
Police brutality is a serious issue that still requires a platform for discussion. I will #TakeAKnee with Colin but it’s more than a polarizing issue to tweet about and forget. Hashtag activism – the fast paced discourse found on social media – tends to chew up and spit out topics, but police brutality does exist and will continue to exist unless people put a stop to it. Taking a knee is symbolic of many things but it’s nothing more than photogenic activism. Police brutality won’t be ended by a hashtag but this is a positive first step. This began with a kneel. What’s next?
]]>https://mustangmessenger.net/4635/opinions/feeling-the/feed/04635Atlanta United United Atlantahttps://mustangmessenger.net/4484/sports/atlanta-united-united-atlanta/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4484/sports/atlanta-united-united-atlanta/#respondMon, 12 Feb 2018 22:13:04 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=4484Sports in Atlanta were on the rise this year with electrifying plays coming out of Atlanta’s team. No, the Falcons weren’t chucking balls up for touchdowns. No, the Hawks weren’t slam dunking on their opponents. Rather a new sport has stormed the Atlanta sports scene. Soccer. Major League Soccer came to the ATL for the first time and it was better than anyone could have envisioned.

Atlanta has a storied history with soccer that was pushed to the background of the ATL sports scene as other sports stole the spotlight. The Silverbacks were the first major soccer team in Atlanta (coined after the famous silverback featured in the Atlanta Zoo at the time), but they began to fall off in popularity over time. The Silverbacks still exist to this day, but with the rise of Atlanta United FC, they continue to be pushed into obscurity due to the lack of funding and attention for the team. They will likely disband within the next few years.

What began as an idea for a team by Uncle Arthur (Arthur Blank) would blossom into the best-supported expansion team in MLS history. Arthur Blank came into the soccer world trying to place a bid with MLS management to attempt to bring an MLS team to the A in 2009. He would go onto rescind that deal because he couldn’t receive the funding for a stadium, but the MLS commissioners didn’t turn their eyes away from what would rake in a lot of money for the league. In 2014 it was announced that a team was granted to Atlanta and it would be arriving in the 2017 season. They would begin the season playing at Bobby Dodd Stadium (Georgia Tech’s stadium). Later they would be sharing the new NFL stadium that the Falcons were debuting that same season. Originally when Atlantans heard that they would be sharing a stadium with a capacity of about 71,000 there were questions of if they would even be able to sell that many tickets for a measly MLS game. Atlanta United dispelled those worries when they revealed that only about 40,000 tickets would be sold for the home games at Mercedes Benz Stadium. The demand was much higher than anticipated.

Atlanta fans and AUFC management underrated themselves by far. They would go on to OUTSELL a Falcons game, have the HIGHEST attendance at an MLS match in the history of the league. All by an expansion team with some extremely low expectations. Atlanta would have an out of this world attendance for an MLS game at 71,874 in the final game of the season against Toronto FC.

The team would finish its inaugural season with 55 points with a record of 15-10-9 (15 wins, 10 draws, 9 losses). They would amass a total of 70 goals on the season, just 4 shy of the Supporters Shield winner Toronto FC’s total of 74. They ended in a very respectable 4th place in the eastern conference. They would go on to lose in the first round of the MLS Cup Playoffs against Columbus Crew SC in a penalty shootout. This was a very disappointing end to such an astounding first season.

Highlights of the Year

The “Snow Game”

The snow game came very early in this inaugural season for the Five Stripes. It also just so happened to be in a game against our MLS expansion brother, Minnesota United. They came into the league along with us in the realignment of the conferences in early 2017. This game made it quite clear that Atlanta was the big brother while Minnesota was just the little brother trying to keep up. The scoreline ended 6-1 in a snowstorm that many Atlanta players had rarely been subject to, as many players are either from local Georgia area or South America. The South American duo of Josef Martinez and Miguel Almirón were able to lead the team through the snowstorm with their bright red stripes. Martinez opened the scoring early with a goal in the 3rd minute of action and it wasn’t going to stop there. Martinez would go on to get 3 goals that game, his first of many hat tricks in the season. Almirón was able to tack on 2 extra goals with Jacob Peterson adding the last goal on a beautiful cross from Greg Garza (the only assist in the game).

Andrew Carleton

Andrew Carleton is the big story this year for Atlanta fans as this is a young player of 17 years of age. He was born and raised here in the Atlanta area. He is from Powder Springs to be exact. He has worked his way into the team and got to play in the final minutes of an MLS game this year. While this was originally meant to be fan service for the loyal fans to be able to see him in action, he actually made the most of this last few moments of the game and showed off some really good runs and playmaking, although no goals connected in his play time. This kid has serious skill on both an MLS and international level, as he played for the U-17 Men’s National Team. He is likely the future for this still very young Atlanta team, and all of Atlanta is behind him.

Julian Gressel: Rookie of the Year

Atlanta drafted Julian Gressel of Providence College in the MLS draft and he was definitely the right choice for the Five Stripes. Atlanta selected Gressel with the 8th pick in the 1st round of the MLS Draft. Gressel was able to come into the league and immediately make an impact on a team that was just as new to it all as he was. He would go on to get a stat line of 5 goals and 9 assists throughout the season. He was able to showcase amazing ball control on the breakaway counter attacks and on the set pieces, where he arguably was AUFC’s best player at creating in the struggled upon set piece. If it weren’t for Gressel one might think Atlanta United would have had an astronomical decrease in the set piece production. Gressel was the runaway winner with nobody getting close to his 50% win in each voting category (player vote: 48%, media vote: 57%, and club vote: 56%).

This upcoming season is destined to be an interesting one with the acquisition of Ezequiel Barco from Argentina for an MLS record-breaking transfer fee of $15 million. It will be interesting to see what this club can accomplish with the new acquisitions!

]]>https://mustangmessenger.net/4484/sports/atlanta-united-united-atlanta/feed/044842017: The Year of Trumphttps://mustangmessenger.net/4604/news/2017-the-year-of-trump/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4604/news/2017-the-year-of-trump/#respondMon, 12 Feb 2018 19:22:12 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=4604In the United States, it has been a rollercoaster of events for both sides of the street. In early 2017, Trump was inaugurated into the office of President of the United States. He came into office with one of the most ambitious conservative agendas in the history of Republican presidents. To begin his Presidency he instantly tackled the Travel Ban promise. He placed a ban on immigrants from Iran, Iraq, Libya, Somalia, Sudan, Syria, and Yemen with Executive Order 13769. To follow up this rather controversial executive action, he withdrew the U.S. from the Paris Agreement on Climate Change. This will not be taking effect until 2020; ironically several days after the 2020 Presidential Election.
One of Trump’s biggest promises to his base was that he would build a wall on the border of Mexico and the United States. This came with controversy as to how he might pay for it, but he claimed that the Mexican government would be the one forking the bill. President Trump put forth many attempts to fix the way that Obamacare (The Affordable Care Act) was laid out. He attempted many revisions and eventually began to attempt an all-out repeal of the system in order to replace it with one of his own. This year wouldn’t be 2017 without the constant Trump vs Kim Jong Un battles on Twitter. Trump is a very social media-centric president and he used his large following to throw insults at the North Korean government and their leader, Kim Jong Un. He dubbed him “Rocket Man” in a rather infamous Tweeting feud. Just recently, about mid to late November, Trump got his penultimate tax reform passed. At the time of writing this, the bill is in reconciliation and awaits further development and approval from the House and the Senate. This reform will provide tax cuts to the upper class in hopes that with the saved money the upper class will be able to provide further jobs for the lower two classes. Overall, Trump’s presidency so far has been a different one, and we will see how he goes about running the free world going forward.
]]>https://mustangmessenger.net/4604/news/2017-the-year-of-trump/feed/04604Women Are Worthy Showhttps://mustangmessenger.net/4602/news/tv-women-are-worthy-show/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4602/news/tv-women-are-worthy-show/#respondMon, 12 Feb 2018 19:20:03 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=4602Throughout the past decades, we have seen a shift in diversity throughout the media for underrepresented groups to have a stronger platform for their voices. The Women Are Worthy Show, hosted by Jacqlyn Charles, is a Cobb-based show that is aimed at promoting sisterhood and giving marginalized people (with an emphasis on women) a platform for their voices. The Women Are Worthy Movement started in 2012 and has transformed into multiple forms of media, including radio and television. The host of the show and self-described life transformational expert Jacqlyn Charles wins her audience over with an upbeat and energetic personality. Committed to engaging the community and breaking barriers in new ways, Jacqlyn left corporate America to dedicate herself to the movement. The host of the show was once homeless but has since found happiness through empowering women with a platform in the form of her show. The movement is the epitome of putting others before yourself, and Jacqlyn As a production assistant, I had the privilege of seeing firsthand the positive effects the show has on the community, like the relationship it has helped strengthen between the law enforcement of our community and its citizens. Jacqlyn Charles is heavily involved with both the Kennesaw and Acworth police departments and is partnered with their program, “Behind the Badge”, which allows viewers to have a deeper look at their police departments from the inside. The show brings the best parts of our own community to light and aims to promote people and groups that would otherwise go unrecognized. Mrs. Jacqlyn hopes to use her show to, “Use media and communication platforms, and storytelling messaging to acknowledge, showcase, and expand the influence people, professions, and circumstances have on empowering individuals worldwide”. The Women Are Worthy show airs on Mondays from 7-8 PM on Facebook Live and previously recorded shows can be found on Youtube.
]]>https://mustangmessenger.net/4602/news/tv-women-are-worthy-show/feed/04602I https://mustangmessenger.net/4592/student-life/i/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4592/student-life/i/#respondMon, 12 Feb 2018 17:47:35 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=4592Kennesaw Mountain students walked through the looming Brooklyn Bridge gates, with strand lights illuminating the decorated street-walk. A café served elegant gowns and handsome suits coffee and pastries, shielding from the chilly breeze that graced the dancefloor. For a night it seemed as though we congregated in New York City – but Monday came, and our streets and corner stores were transformed back into the courtyard.

One night each year, our school embraces an environment of no boundaries: students who have never talked to each other before will share a dance, people will shrug off poorly-executed dance moves, girls will share heart-to-hearts about their aching feet. And we have this unity because of the members of the Art Club and Mane Link who worked so hard to create a night of “who cares”. Who cares what grade you’re in, what you plan to do after this, even what you plan to do after high school? The creators – Jenna Biggins, Junior Class President, Sophie Glass, Art Club President, Halli Watson, Junior Class Vice President, and many more – made sure to provide a dance that allowed for everyone to have fun and make long-lasting memories.

Our beautiful night closed with the amazing women that represent KMHS in a way that all of us agreed deserved recognition. Class favorites Lanie Cantrell, Olivia White, Bella Hart, and Olivia Seabaugh led the final march of the homecoming court, paving the way to the center of the floor for our homecoming queen, Bailey McGovern’s, dance to this year’s song “Your Song” by Elton John.

I Love New York was an evening that exuded beauty from both its décor and attendees, and really ended as a night to remember. This one’s going to be tough to match. Good Luck, Class of 2019!

]]>https://mustangmessenger.net/4592/student-life/i/feed/04592Disasters Devastate Liveshttps://mustangmessenger.net/4587/news/disasters-devastate-live/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4587/news/disasters-devastate-live/#respondMon, 12 Feb 2018 08:37:09 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=45872017 was a catastrophic year for those living on the Caribbean and coast. As of November 30th, we can all be relieved to know that the hurricane season is finally over. The Atlantic hurricane season had a record breaking number of hurricanes just in September. It will long be remembered as the most destructive hurricane season on record. seventeen storms, ten hurricanes and three major hurricanes all hit 2017 in the worst way. The official hurricane season started on June first, but it started to pick up in August, beginning with Hurricane Emily. Emily only reached tropical storm status, but then came category one Hurricane Franklin, following closely behind was category two Hurricane Gert. After that came Hurricane Harvey. Harvey shocked us all when it came full force in Texas as a category four on August 26th. Being the first major hurricane since 2005, US citizens were not prepared in the slightest. The intense flooding (60 inches!) left about $198 billion in damage, but mother nature was not stopping there! Suddenly, Hurricane Irma came sweeping in. This category five hurricane with winds at 185 mph became known as the strongest storm in the Atlantic known to man. This hurricane began forming off the West African coast, but began shifting to several Argentina islands. On the night of September 8th, Irma traveled to the coast of Cuba. Just as people thought it was finally coming to an end, Irma made its way towards Florida and stayed at a category three, overall leaving $64 billion in damages. After Irma, Hurricane Jose, Hurricane Katia and Hurricane Lee luckily stayed at a category 2-3; all three hurricanes stayed far away from the Central Atlantic. The break did not last very long because then came category five Hurricane Maria at full force. Maria headed straight towards Puerto Rico on September 20th and began as a category four with very heavy winds. Puerto Rico was the only island affected because of Maria, but still resulted in $51 billions worth of damage. Puerto Rico was left with a disaster on the island; some are still without power and they are still working on restoring their buildings and roads. Quickly after Maria, came category one Hurricane Nate which luckily did not result in too much of a disaster. The season came to an end when Hurricane Ophelia entered the easternmost Atlantic region as a category three. Although, it was no threat to the United States, it had strong winds of 119 mph. After making its way to southwest Ireland, Ophelia wrapped up the hurricane season. Scientists are now gathering trying to make some sense of the events. It is normal for the Atlantic to see about 6 hurricanes, but 10 was something extraordinary. Meteorologist Kevin Trenberth explains that, “having high ocean heat content below the surface means that they can be sustained and remain stronger, more intense than they otherwise would,” Climate change is playing a huge role in the cause of the recent hurricanes. So what does that mean for the future? The warmer the oceans become, the more intense the storms will become. It is not clear whether the hurricanes will become more common throughout the year, but it is important to know that change should begin now in order to secure the future.
]]>https://mustangmessenger.net/4587/news/disasters-devastate-live/feed/04587The Internet Is Dying and Here’s Why You Should Carehttps://mustangmessenger.net/4558/opinions/the-internet-is-dying-and-heres-why-you-should-care/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4558/opinions/the-internet-is-dying-and-heres-why-you-should-care/#respondThu, 30 Nov 2017 03:58:40 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=4558Do you use the internet? Do enjoy the free and open space on the internet that we share? Guess what – you might not have it for long.

There’s a lot of history and political jargon in the current situation, but here’s how the internet is dying and why it should matter to you. Right now, if you’re reading this at home connected to your wifi, then you’re with a company providing you that internet service. You pay per month for the internet service and that’s all – you can visit any sites and use any apps that require the internet and it’s a done deal.

It’s all said and done that way because of network neutrality. Network neutrality, a term first coined by Columbia University media law professor Tim Wu in 2003, is the principle that Internet service providers (ISPs) must treat all data on the Internet the same. It means that these providers can’t discriminate or charge differently for any user no matter. Under these principles, internet service providers are unable to intentionally block, slow down or charge money for specific websites and online content. However, many ISPs endorse the elimination of net neutrality, seeing this as an opportunity to increase their pr

ofits. Not only does eliminating net neutrality enable this, it allows service providers to differentiate Internet traffic into a “fast lane” – for those companies who can afford to pay to have their content delivered at premium speeds – and a “slow lane” – for everyone else’s websites.

Under the Obama administration, the open and free internet was protected by net neutrality laws and backed by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC), an independent government agency responsible for regulating the radio, television and phone industries. Now, under Trump and incumbent Chairman Ajit Pai, the free and open internet is under threat, with Trump’s opposition of it – citing it as a way to restrict companies – and with the FCC under a Republican majority currently debating legislation to define limits for internet service providers.

The reason it matters so much now is more so because of what’s happened before.

Net neutrality has always been an issue but has come to the forefront of activism when in 2014 the federal court struck down the FCC’s 2010 open Internet order. This action again the order, which moved towards a more net neutrality concept and would have helped establish American rights to open Internet free from big corporations capitalizing on it, sparked activists to push for keeping the net neutral.

The movement, popularized by the ‘Save the Internet’ movement in 2014, culminated to September 10, 2014 – “Internet Slowdown Day” – when hundreds of organizations and companies staged a blackout to show what would happen without net neutrality. Online companies such as Netflix, Kickstarter, Etsy, and Tumblr displayed a spinning icon representing a slow loading internet on websites. These actions led to the commission voting 3-2 to reclassify the Internet as a “Title II” communications service and impose rules that prohibit providers from blocking or throttling traffic, or from selling speedier access to their subscribers. Today, the FCC, under a Republican majority, has put out for public comment to roll back “Title II.”

In an era where the world and society is facilitated by a free and open internet space, the idea of blocking it in any way possible is not only alarming but worrisome. We live in an era where everything – education, communication, and so much more – is done online. KMHS Student IJ Jones says, “The internet is a major factor in our daily lives. Most students in this generation have no idea what life is without it.” And it’s true. Most classes have online groups on sites such as Edmodo and many students are assigned papers and projects, which are often done through research online and typed up on Google Docs or something similar. The world is connected through social media such as Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter, and even more through messaging apps like iMessage or WhatsApp and video calling like Skype or FaceTime. Even shopping has favored online use, with a record of $6.59 billion spent online overall this past Cyber Monday.

It’s very obvious that this generation and our current society is heavily influenced by the internet and should be something accessible for everyone, not just those who could afford ‘premium rates’. The FCC has confirmed that they will vote on December 14th to abolish the regulations that prevent ISPs from controlling what websites and online services are available to their customers. Now is time for us to take action and here’s how:

Email your congressman. If you can’t find your representative, check out this website to find out. If you’re not too sure about emailing, text Resist to 50409 – along with your message – and the resistbot will find out who represents you in Congress and deliver your message to them in under 2 minutes.

Use your social media.

Tweet the FCC and the FCC Chairman Ajit Pai about what you feel and why you think net neutrality should stay with the 140+ character count.

Spread information. Get this trending on Twitter and other social media. Check out the #NetNeutrality tags on Twitter and Tumblr. Post on your stories on Facebook, Instagram, and Snapchat to bring attention to what’s going on. Share information to people and make sure to get the word out.

CALL. If you don’t know what to do when calling or who to call, visit this website – it’ll give you a script on what to say and it will give you more information that’s specific to the state you live in. Another resource to use is 5calls.org – open the website and click on Demand The FCC Maintain Net Neutrality and dial the number and read the scripted message.

Sign petitions. Petitions are a way to bring attention and discussion on a topic and promote change. There are tons of petitions out there to save the internet, here’s one on change.org and freepress.net.

TL;DR: The internet is completely free with net neutrality rules but that’s now being threatened by Trump’s new FCC Chairman, who plans to let big companies charge you more money to access specific websites – possibly in packages like in the above image. Now is the time to contact your congressmen and save the internet before December 14.

EDIT: The vote is now happening on Monday, December 11th. What to do now is to EMAIL YOUR REPRESENTATIVES and try to change their minds – they do have a say in it. The FCC is currently not accepting votes from bots or minors, however, EMAILING YOUR REPRESENTATIVES can impact the vote.

]]>https://mustangmessenger.net/4558/opinions/the-internet-is-dying-and-heres-why-you-should-care/feed/04558Dua Lipa – Pop Music’s Next Hit Songstress?https://mustangmessenger.net/4356/entertainment/dua-lipa-pop-musics-next-hit-songstress/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4356/entertainment/dua-lipa-pop-musics-next-hit-songstress/#respondSun, 05 Nov 2017 01:19:53 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=4356Dua Lipa
“New Rules”by UK artist Dua Lipa hit the airwaves on July 21st, 2017 and quickly gained traction in the UK and the US. The track details a list of rules to avoid the traps of a former boyfriend and is all about female empowerment and getting over a bad breakup. The music video for “New Rules”has amassed over 450 million views and even furthers the song’s message with the added themes of the importance of women working together and supporting each other. Dua Lipa was mildly unknown by most music fans before “New Rules” was released, which was in fact the sixth single from her debut studio album. After suggestions from a few friends to listen to New Rules, and seeing her all over social media accounts from music fans with similar tastes as myself, I decided to give the deluxe version of Dua Lipa’s self-titled album a try.

“Genesis” , the very first song on the album, serves as a true introduction to the artist and what she’s all about. It opens with, “In the beginning, God created heaven and earth. For what it’s worth, I think that he might’ve created you first”, providing the first of many Biblical references throughout the album. After hearing her sing these first few lines, I immediately stopped the song and started it from the beginning, because she surprisingly sings these verses with a deep voice. After that moment, I knew this would be one of my favorite songs on the album. It repeatedly referenced themes of forgiveness and new beginnings in a clearly struggling relationship. When the song ended, I was excited to continue listening and had high hopes for the rest of the album. Unfortunately, most of those hopes fell flat once the album concluded.

Self-titled albums are supposed to be the most personal and emotionally hard hitting albums of an artist’s career, but this one was just nothing like that. Each song on the album was about the same thing; a guy, or some turbulent relationship. Now I normally wouldn’t have a problem with that, but she explicitly came out and said, “This album is me. It’s a pure representation of who I am as a person and as an artist”, and that sadly isn’t conveyed in most of the music. Every other song on the album sounded the same, minus the strangely out of place “Homesick”,a piano ballad featuring background vocals from Chris Martin, the lead singer of the band Coldplay. Certain parts of the album feel way too over-calculated and reach too desperately for the charts. The radio is already filled with old Disney stars, Chainsmokers, and past boy band members. Their increasingly electronically produced sound and anthems about partying aren’t helping distinguish themselves from each other at all. But that partially isn’t the artists’ fault. Thanks to music streaming services like Spotify and Apple Music, the music industry is becoming less and less lucrative for new artists, giving major record labels more incentive to only capitalize on what’s popular and not take as many risks.

Now that I’ve gotten my major problems with the album out of the way, it might sound like I hate this album, but I really don’t. Over time, I’ve actually grown to like it and respect it’s ambition. Certain entries like “Be The One”, a bouncy, mid-tempo song about having the strength to fight for what you want, with vocals likened to Sia, and “Room for Two”, a curiously appealing and monotone R&B influenced track about fate catching up with an unreasonable lover, showcase Lipa’s various vocal abilities. There are also more empowerment anthems featured on the album, like “Blow Your Mind (Mwah)” and “Hotter Than Hell”, fitting considering she recently performed at Atlanta’s Music Midtown festival. Although some of the album’s Biblical theming is neglected, “Garden” exemplifies it by focusing on a rapidly failing relationship that was once as adventurous and pure as the Garden of Eden and connects to “Genesis”, the album’s opening track. The UK artist also does some experimentation with “Dreams”, building up the song’s potential with hypnotic verses that are blared and layered, until she just flat out yells, “You love me like yeah, yeah. You love me right, oh yeah” in more reverberated tones.

Overall, her album is a decent endeavor for an up and coming pop artist. Every song tries to cater to different popular music tastes, which guarantees it to have at least one hit song, but also hurts the album as a whole in result. The true standout of this album is definitely Lipa’s voice. Her bold and powerful voice carries a lot of songs that would’ve flopped in other hands and turned average pop into anthems for the heartbroken.

]]>https://mustangmessenger.net/4356/entertainment/dua-lipa-pop-musics-next-hit-songstress/feed/04356NBC’s ‘This Is Us’ Will Make You Cryhttps://mustangmessenger.net/4468/entertainment/this-is-us-review/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4468/entertainment/this-is-us-review/#respondSat, 28 Oct 2017 23:30:57 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=4468NBC’s two time Emmy-award winning show This Is Us is one of the hottest new shows on television. The dramatic comedy follows the Pearson family story, told through the interweaving of flashbacks and showcasing the impact previous moments have on their present day lives. At its core, the show is simply heartwarming and leaves the viewer wanting more moments of love, family, and heartbreak. Boasting a diverse cast with fantastic chemistry, it’s not hard to see why the show has garnered so much critical acclaim, earning an 88% on Rotten Tomatoes on its first season and an 8.8/10 on IMDb. The intricate writing captures its audience with a feel of authenticity and creates a wholesome show that makes viewers appreciate tradition, the importance of family, and the best parts of life. This Is Us is a show to enjoy together with friends or the whole family.

Episodes air weekly on Tuesdays at 9/8c on NBC.

]]>https://mustangmessenger.net/4468/entertainment/this-is-us-review/feed/04468Dauset Trails Orienteering Meethttps://mustangmessenger.net/4446/student-life/dauset-trails-orienteering-meet/
https://mustangmessenger.net/4446/student-life/dauset-trails-orienteering-meet/#respondFri, 27 Oct 2017 23:13:44 +0000https://mustangmessenger.net/?p=4446On October 14th, 2017, Kennesaw Mountain’s NJROTC Orienteering Team placed 4th overall at the Dauset Trails Orienteering Meet. Orienteering is land navigation, where – with the use of a map – a runner locates a series of points through the trails or woods, depending on difficulty assigned by color. Think of it as something akin to a scavenger hunt. The faster you complete the course the better your score. At the event, every team is given specific start times for each cadet, with times spread out to prevent any cheating in the form of conferring with teammates and competitors.

Training for the meet began in August and consisted of running long distance, sprints, hill sprints, and other cardiovascular exercises. Some cadets trained through running on their own, often going over maps from previous meets to identify and correct any mistakes.

At the meet, the team had a great start and finished with their chins up, placing 4th overall while the yellow team got 3rd and unfortunately our orange team disqualified. Orienteering Commander Michael Miles commented, “We did pretty good placing wise, especially with one of our teams disqualifying.” Individually, Cadet Lieutenant Commander Lambros received a medal for placing in the top ten for Orange and Cadet Seaman Apprentice Coverdale and Cadet Seaman Recruit Ferguson placed in the top seven.